


Four's a Crowd

by portmanteaux



Series: Supporting Characters [6]
Category: Glee
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, F/M, Fatherhood, M/M, Surrogacy, serious conversations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-03
Updated: 2017-08-03
Packaged: 2018-12-10 11:28:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11690700
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/portmanteaux/pseuds/portmanteaux
Summary: AU where Kurt and Blaine met for the first time after college in New York. Several years after the events of "Delusions of Grandeur," Kurt and Blaine are ready to take their first steps into fatherhood. Burt gives advice. Rachel, once again, surprises them. It probably doesn't work well if you don't read these in order. This is even sillier than the last one.





	Four's a Crowd

            “What’s new with you two? I haven’t seen either of you in far too long.”

            “Oh. Well, I’ve got a new line of accessories coming out next month,” Kurt said.

            “The school musical’s coming up,” Blaine said with a grin. “I think we’re doing The Wizard of Oz. I'm working on the arrangement.”

            “That sounds like fun! You’re so good with kids, Blaine,” Rachel said. “Have you two given thought to having some of your own?”

            “Oh. Well, yeah,” Blaine answered haltingly, looking at Kurt to make sure it wasn’t a secret. “We’ve thought about it. We've been looking into our options lately.”

            “What are those? I’m sure reproductive technology has advanced since my dads’ time.”

            “Not far enough,” Blaine said regretfully.

            Rachel seemed genuinely interested, so Kurt continued. “IVF has improved, but our only option for a child that’s biologically related to one of us is still surrogacy. We found a place that caters to gay couples for finding a surrogate, so that—”

            “I’ll do it,” Rachel said with conviction.

            “Do what?” Kurt wondered, confused.

            “I’ll be your surrogate. My dads couldn’t have had me without a surrogate, and I want to pay that forward.”

            Kurt and Blaine shared a look. “Rachel—”

            “You’d rather have someone you know. You can even use my eggs if you want to. My medical history is great—and talented—on both sides.”

            “Rachel—”

            “You’ll be such great dads!”

            “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” Blaine said sensibly.

            “Rachel, what about your career? What about Jesse?” Kurt asked.

            “It’s none of Jesse’s business what I do with my uterus,” Rachel replied stridently. “And my career can handle going on hold for a few months.”

            “Thank you for the offer, Rachel, really. It’s incredibly kind and selfless of you. But it’s a gigantic decision to make—”

            “I'm sure I want to do this,” she insisted.

            “But _we’re_ not sure of anything yet,” Kurt said gently, pointing between himself and Blaine. “We have a lot to talk about, okay?”

            “Of course.”

            “Talk to Jesse. Talk to your dads and your doctor. Think about it for a week, and if you don’t change your mind, let us know.”

            Rachel promised to do as they asked, and then noticed she was running late for a hair appointment and ran out of the café in a flurry of hugs and goodbyes. When she was gone, Blaine let out a shaky breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding. “We should get home, too,” he suggested.

            Kurt nodded. “Yeah. Let’s go.”

            Their walk home was quiet, both of them gathering their thoughts and trying to make sense of what Rachel had just dropped in their laps.

            Inside their apartment, Blaine set down his keys and wallet and gestured toward the music room. “I’m going to work for awhile.”

            “Don’t you think we should talk?” Kurt wondered at his back as he headed out of the room. He didn’t understand how Blaine could want to go about his day as usual. “About what Rachel just said?”

            Blaine stopped, but barely looked at Kurt. “Not yet. Let’s just…wait until it’s real, please? If we talk about it and decide…” Blaine’s voice was wobbly as he cut himself off. “She needs to think about it, like you said, and then if she still means it…then it’ll be real and we can talk about it.”

            Kurt nodded and wrapped him up in a hug. He had no idea Blaine was so emotional about this. “Of course. We’ll wait and see if she’s serious.”

            “Thank you,” Blaine murmured into Kurt’s shoulder.

 

\-----

 

            Kurt’s phone buzzed on the counter while he was whisking together a roux. When he saw that it was Rachel, he froze for a moment, accidentally pressing his hand against the hot edge of the pan. “Ow! Fuck!” he bit out, putting the whisk on the counter and picking up his phone. He answered the call while he turned on the cold water and stuck his hand underneath it.

            “Hello?” he answered, a bit more harshly than Rachel deserved.

            “Hi, Kurt,” Rachel said. “Are you busy?”

            “Just making dinner,” he replied. “What’s up?”

            “I didn't mean to catch you at a bad moment. I just thought I’d better call you as soon as possible.”

            “Rachel, is this about…what we talked about on Friday?”

            “Yes. Is Blaine with you?”

            “No,” Kurt said over the sudden hammering in his chest.

            “Well, you can call me when he gets home if he wants to hear it from me. I’ve thought about it, and I talked to my dads, and Jesse, and my gynecologist, and I even called my lawyer, and I want to do this for you. Did you know that compensated surrogacy is illegal in New York? You’d have to find an out-of-state surrogate. But you don’t have to pay me, so voila! If you want the use of my uterus, I’m offering. And before you ask, I’m of sound mind and body, and I’m absolutely certain.”

            “Rachel…” Kurt said softly, his eyes filling up with tears, and not because of the burn. “Thank you. I…have to talk to Blaine. But thank you for offering, even if…it really means a lot.”

            “You’re welcome. Talk to you soon.”

            Kurt hung up the phone and dried his hands in a bit of a daze. He jolted out of it when he remembered that he was supposed to be cooking. With the roux clumpy and burnt, he decided dinner wasn’t worth salvaging. He picked up his phone again and texted Blaine to pick up something for dinner—his choice.

            He poured his focus into cleaning up the mess he’d made in the kitchen, and when it was spotless he sat down on the couch. He wasn’t left to his thoughts very long before the front door opened and Blaine came through.

            “Hi,” Blaine said. “I grabbed a pizza, since it was my choice,” he said with a teasing smile as he set the box on the table. “What happened to that recipe you wanted to try?”

            “Oh, I um…I messed it up and didn’t feel like starting over.” Kurt rubbed at his stinging finger—it wasn’t serious, but the pain kept him grounded while his mind was spinning.

            “You okay?” Blaine asked, stopping to look at him more closely.

            “Yeah. I burnt myself. It’s fine.”

            Blaine made a sympathetic sound and went into the kitchen for plates and napkins.

            Kurt accepted a plate with a smile and opened the pizza box. “You got half Hawaiian,” he said.

            “It’s your favorite,” Blaine replied by way of explanation.

            “Thanks.” He picked up a slice from his side while Blaine grabbed some of whatever his half was—something with bacon and jalapeños that made Kurt’s mouth hurt to look at. They sat on the couch and ate quietly.

            “Okay, what’s going on?” Blaine asked, setting down his plate. “You’re all distracted and weird."

            Kurt wiped his hands and looked up at him nervously. “Rachel called. She offered to be our surrogate,” he continued.

            Blaine’s jaw twitched, but otherwise he didn’t react.

            “She said she talked to her dads and Jesse and her lawyer and she wants to do it. She's sure.”

            Blaine looked down at the couch cushions.

            “Oh my god, _please_ say something. I have no idea how to feel about this and I need to know what you’re thinking.”

            “I—” He cleared his throat. “She's not going to change her mind?”

            “She says no. She said you can call her if you want to hear it from her.”

            “No, that’s okay. I just…how do we make this decision?”

            Kurt bit his lip. “Pro-con list?”

            Blaine shrugged. “I’ll get my ipad.”

            They talked all night, neither of them confident they could fall asleep anyway. They fell into bed together a couple of hours before dawn. Kurt’s internal clock woke him at his usual time, and he turned over to watch Blaine sleep for a few minutes.

            He texted Rachel, figuring she'd answer whenever she woke up. They’d agreed to invite her over for brunch and talk to her about it because, for all the pros and cons they'd generated, they came up with almost as many questions. Kurt made coffee and then put together the ingredients for baked French toast, which he covered and put in the fridge. Coffee in hand, Kurt closed the bedroom door so he wouldn’t disturb Blaine and called his dad.

            “Kurt,” Burt answered, his voice gruff. “Everything okay?”

            “Yeah! Yeah. Sorry to call so early. I can call back later,” Kurt said.

            “No, no, it’s fine. What’s up, kiddo?”

            “Rachel offered to be our surrogate,” Kurt blurted out. "So we can have a baby," he added, realizing some context might be helpful first thing in the morning.

            “Wow. That’s…that's big.”

            “I know. We couldn't even really consider it until we gave her time to think it over, but yesterday she said she wants to do it.”

            “So, uh, how does that work? Would Rachel be a biological parent?”

            “Well, she could, but legally that’s tricky. New York already isn’t very favorable toward surrogacy, so if she did it we’d use an egg donor.”

            “Okay,” Burt said. “And then what?”

            Kurt found explaining the process to his dad to be soothing, in a way. He’d read numerous websites and had it explained to him by the family lawyer that Nick referred them to. They find an egg donor in the database—from profiles with medical and biographical data—and then either Kurt or Blaine would contribute sperm, the eggs would be fertilized, and the embryos would be transferred to the surrogate.

            Easy peasy.

            “Have you guys decided what to tell Rachel yet?”

            “No, we talked about it all night. I think we’re leaning toward it, but we have to talk to her more.”

            “Wouldn’t it be…I don’t know, hard, for her to be around your kid all the time? I mean, it can’t be easy to carry a child like that and then give it to someone else to raise.”

            “Yeah. I don’t know.”

            “But on the other hand, that might be good. A kid grows up and starts wondering about stuff like that, you know. Where they come from. It might be nice to have Rachel on hand to explain it from her side.”

            Kurt nodded, and then realized his dad couldn't see him. “Right. So, do you think we should do it?”

            “Hey, I don’t know, Kurt. This is a complicated decision for you and Blaine. And Rachel. There’s a lot of moving parts. You’ve got to do what’s best for you.”

            “Right," Kurt said faintly.

            “I gotta tell you, I know it’s really far off and still just in the planning stages at this point, but I’m excited to be a grandpa again. You’re going to be a great dad.”

            Kurt wiped his eyes. That kind of reassurance from Burt would always be welcome. “I love you, Dad.”

            “Love you too, Kiddo. Let me know what you decide, okay?”

            “Okay.”

 

\-----

 

            Rachel came over a few hours later, and they ate quietly. Glancing between them, Rachel set down her fork and squared her shoulders.

            “Interview me,” she said.

            “What?” Kurt asked.

            “This is awkward because I’m your friend, but the kind of arrangement we’re considering has a lot of legal and medical dimensions. So treat me like you’d treat anyone you were considering and interview me.”

            It was easier after that, and Kurt was (for once) grateful for Rachel’s assertiveness. They talked about everything—what the procedure would entail and egg donors and what timeline they were working with. The expenses Kurt and Blaine would cover and the pregnancy and breastfeeding. It was still awkward, but they got through all of their questions.

            “Guys, if you don’t want to choose me, I’ll accept your decision. Something I know I haven’t always been good at doing,” she added, looking meaningfully at Kurt. “But you know that when I decide to do something I don't give up. You don’t have to worry about me changing my mind or trying to take advantage of you. You can experience the whole pregnancy this way, and I know you wish you could do that,” here she looked at Blaine. “And I can be Aunt Rachel, or just friend-of-the-family Rachel, whatever you want, and watch you be wonderful parents.”

            Blaine looked meaningfully at Kurt, and Kurt turned to Rachel.

            “Can you give us a minute?”

            “Of course.” She poured herself a glass of orange juice and sipped it as they left the room. She understood that this was a huge decision for them, but really, given the choice between one of their closest friends and complete stranger, she thought the decision was a no-brainer. She cleaned up the dishes, humming to herself and feeling positively selfless.

            Kurt and Blaine came back ten minutes later, looking teary-eyed and holding on to each other like they couldn’t let go. “Rachel,” Blaine said shakily. “We’d love for you to be our surrogate.”

            “Yeah!” she shouted, punching the air. She threw her arms around Kurt first and then hugged Blaine just as tightly. “I’m so glad we’re doing this. Call me when you know what the next steps are, and we’ll go from there.”

            They both nodded and thanked her tearfully. “I’ll go. I’m sure you’ve got some more talking to do,” she said with a sly little smile. She hugged them both and left.

            Blaine called Burt and Carole while Kurt called their lawyer and then the egg bank.

            “So…when Rachel was talking about us being able to _experience_ the pregnancy, she looked right at me,” Blaine said with a frown.

            “Did she?”

            “Yes. Any guess what that was about?"

            “I think she probably knows as well as I do that when presented with a pregnant belly you get all misty and weird, especially when the baby kicks—”

            “It's _amazing_ ,” Blaine shot back defensively.

            “—and she knows that you’re going to be a thousand times more emotional when it’s your own child, and she knows you want to be able to be as close to the pregnancy as you can,” Kurt finished gently, rubbing Blaine’s shoulder.

            Blaine huffed, but relented. “I don’t want our friends to think I’m some weird pregnancy fetishist.”

            “I don’t think anyone’s mind went there but yours,” Kurt replied.

           

\----

 

            The four of them—Rachel, Jesse, Kurt, and Blaine—showing up for the embryo transfer was a bit overkill, but if the doctor was fazed, she didn't show it. Rachel banished them all to the waiting room, where they awkwardly flipped through magazines.

            "I feel like we should all have cigars," Blaine joked wryly. Kurt huffed a laugh. Blaine glanced at Jesse, who just looked right back at him. He figured it was bound to be weird for Jesse that his fiancée was (hopefully!) getting impregnated with Kurt and Blaine's baby.

            They'd finally decided that Blaine would be the bio-dad. Kurt had really wanted it to be Blaine, and Blaine had agreed without too much arm-twisting.

            They were there for quite a while, and when the procedure was over and Rachel came back out of the room, looking exactly the same as when she went in, all three of them jumped to their feet. She rolled her eyes indulgently and let them all escort her out of the clinic.

            "Promise you'll take it easy for a couple days?" Blaine said. "I mean for _you_ —I know this part of the process has been stressful."

            "I promise."

            There was an awkward pause, and Jesse rolled his eyes before kissing Rachel's cheek. "I'll go pull the car around."

            Kurt and Blaine each hugged Rachel and thanked her for the hundredth time, and offered any help she might need.

            "You three," she said, shaking her head. "Jesse's trying to give you two a run for your money in the 'overprotective man' category. I look forward to a very well-attended pregnancy."

            Something that had been bothering Blaine suddenly clicked, and–

            “Oh, my god!” he said loudly and suddenly, making Kurt whip around and Rachel jump.

            “What is it?” Kurt asked.

            Blaine was looking between them, his eyes wide. “Does Jesse think you’re about to have your gay ex-boyfriend’s baby?” he demanded of Rachel.

            Kurt’s eyes widened and he turned to stare at Rachel, too.

            Rachel didn’t reply and Blaine’s eyebrows crept slowly upward. “You never told him?”

            “Well, I just didn’t think it mattered past a certain point…”

            “Rachel! Oh my _god_!”

            “Blaine, honey, take a deep breath," Kurt said calmly. "And Rachel, please tell your fiancé that everything he knows is a lie so that my husband can sleep at night."

            Jesse pulled up to the curb and Kurt opened the passenger door for Rachel. "Bye, thanks, see you soon!" he said into the door before closing it.

            He looked over at Blaine, who managed to wave goodbye to them as they drove away. "Well," Kurt said wryly. "Now we know who the hysterical parent is going to be."

**Author's Note:**

> As I said before, this was originally written as parts of a much longer fic. This was the only other time the events from "Delusions of Grandeur" were referenced again, so I made it a sequel. I did the legal research for this a long time ago.


End file.
